


the benefits of dating single dads—and where to meet them!

by juguitos



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: First Dates, First Kiss, M/M, Single Dads AU, Single Parent Ben Mitchell, Single Parent Callum Highway, Single Parents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-14
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:14:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22252405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/juguitos/pseuds/juguitos
Summary: Surely Callum misunderstood the whole situation; no way was Ben into men, not when he was the proud father of his sparky little girl, Lexi. Things didn’t seem to make sense to him, but who was he to judge, here he was, a now single father, who hid his own secret for over 14 years.
Relationships: Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell
Comments: 35
Kudos: 259





	1. how to pick up on a cute dad

**Author's Note:**

> per request of [benthighway ](http://www.benthighway.tumblr.com) _"nah, someone write a single dads au_ "; based on these [gifs](https://callumsoftway.tumblr.com/post/190197348862)
> 
> just to clarify; bens and callums ages are canon (23/28) but to fit the narrative of the gifs, lexi is an infant

Callum is startled from his paperwork by his son’s cries coming from the baby monitor. He rushes off to the nursery and quickly picks him up, swaying him left and right, bouncing him up and down, humming a soft lullaby. Nothing seems to be working. He has no one close to ask for advice. He presses his lips against his son’s forehead and feels it a bit too warm. He rushes to the drawer where he has the baby’s thermometer and takes his temperature. To his alarming surprise, it seems his son has a slight fever going.

He unlocks his phone and against everything he wanted to do, he dials the number of Thomas, the pediatrician.

“Sorry, sorry, its Callum, I know you’re working but Aiden seems to have a slight fever. Should I take him to the hospital or a clinic?”

“Don’t worry Callum, I gave you my number for these reasons. I need you to check for a few things before you rush him to the hospital, check if there’s vomit in his crib, check his diaper, and see if there are any rashes on his body” Callum hears him excuse himself through the mouthpiece, and feels completely guilty.

“Thomas, I’m really sorry about bothering you while you work” Callum says again, his phone now on speaker as he checks everything that Thomas had asked about.

“Callum, it’s alright. You can make it up to me by finally accepting going out for that drink.”

The last thing Callum wants to think about right now is going on a date with his son’s pediatrician.

“Uh, there’s no vomit, or rashes. He did need a change though.”

“Alright, give little Aiden 2 mL of Acetaminophen. That should start bringing his fever down, bathe him in lukewarm water, and make sure to dress him down. If the fever doesn’t start going down in forty-five minutes to an hour, you might need to take little Aiden to the hospital. ” There’s a slight pause from Thomas, “I can come over if you want, Callum.”

Callum is already rummaging through the medical bin looking for any sign of the medicine, “Alright, thank you Thomas! If I need anything I’ll give you a call, yeah?”

“Alright—“ Before Thomas could say anything else, Callum ended the call abruptly.

Of course Callum is down on his luck, there is no sign of any medication in any of the medicine bins. He thinks quickly, and before anything else can happen, he wraps his son in his warm blanket and heads to the pharmacy that is down the street.

“ _Fuck_ ” He’s looking through the medicine on display not really knowing which to get.

“Uh, you need help, mate?”

Callum turns quickly to the source of the voice, a good looking man, with a baby carrier and a blonde little heading bobbing up and down.

“Uh, yeah, yeah. I was told to buy him some Acetaminophen, but they all sound the same.” His hand quickly goes to Aiden’s forehead, it’s no longer warm, which is confusing Callum.

The young man nods, and looks over a few of the boxes in front of them. He reaches for two different boxes and hands them to Callum.

“You can go with either of these two, they work great” he holds one a little higher “I might recommend this one more, since that other one when I gave it to this little one gave her an upset tummy for a few days. It could have just been her, but now I just don’t trust it” He smiles at Callum.

“Thank you, I’m so sorry, you’re probably busy and –“

“Nah mate, this little princess gets fussy and wont calm down until I take her out for a walk”

“So you just walk her around in the pharmacy?”

“Er, no. I was actually in here getting myself a drink, then I saw you struggling and decided to help out”

They’re walking towards the cashier, they wait for a few seconds before Callum is called forward to pay his item. Callum is fumbling to get his wallet out but fails miserably, he looks back at the stranger and with pleading eyes asks,

“Can you hold him for a moment?”

“Course!” He reaches out and holds Aiden in his arms, bouncing him up and down, Aiden cooing at him.

“Look Lexi, a baby!”

After paying, Callum is quick to open the medicine box and measure out the medication and give it to his son, who is still in this handsome stranger’s arms.

“You honestly trusted some random bloke in a pharmacy with your child? What if I would have run off with him?”

“Would you?”

He huffs out a laugh and answers, “Nah, got enough with her, don’t I?” he kisses the top of the little girls head.

Callum smiles as Aiden is handed back to him, “Listen mate, thank you for helping me out. I can buy you a coffee if you’re okay with that”

“Ben”

“Huh?”

“My name, its Ben” Ben smiles big at him.

“Callum”

“Alright Callum, let’s go get that coffee, yeah?”

\--

Ben orders their coffees, and Callum is about to pay when he stops him,

“It’s alright Callum, I got this, go get a table for us instead” he flashes another smile at Callum and winks at him. Callum’s heart flutters and he puts his head down and blushes.

He finds a table and takes a seat, slightly bouncing Aiden in his arms, and checking his forehead, and again, to his surprise, it feels like he’s gone back to a normal temperature. He looks up at Ben who’s still near the till waiting for their drinks, something in his chest seems to liven up. This feeling he knew, back when he first laid eyes on the only man he has ever loved. He pushes those thoughts down and smiles as Ben approaches the table.

“Coffee, cream only, for you, and a large Cappuccino for me” he smiles as he slides the drinks on the table.

\--

They talk about how Callum just moved to Walford, Callum avoiding any mention of Whitney, the pain still too raw for him to process it. Ben talks about his daughter, Lexi, and how she changed his life completely, Callum agrees with him as Aiden had made a complete change to his own life. Callum is taking a sip from his coffee when the barista that took their order is walking over to their table, a plate with a pastry on his hands and setting it down between Ben and himself.

“I see you finally managed to get Lexi a hot dad that you didn’t meet at a bar”

“Oi, Jay, come off it, yeah?”

“Where did you two meet, in a single dads group?”

Callum nearly chokes on his drink when he looks between the barista, Jay, and Ben, “I’m sorry?”

Ben looks down at his little girl, “Ignore him, yeah? Jay was just leaving, weren’t ya Jay?”

Jay raises his hands up in defeat, “Alright, alright, don’t say I didn’t do anything to sweeten up your date”

“This ain’t a dat—“

Before Ben could finish his thought Jay had already walked away, throwing a huge smile and wink towards Callum.

Surely Callum misunderstood the whole situation; no way was Ben into men, not when he was the proud father of his sparky little girl, Lexi. Things didn’t seem to make sense to him, but who was he to judge, here he was, a now single father, who hid his own secret for over 14 years.

“Callum?”

“Huh, what?”

“I said to ignore him, he’s been trying to set me up with blokes left and right, but don’t worry. I ain’t trying to change you or anything like that” his smile is sincere.

“You’re bisexual?” Callum asks, maybe he could have a chance with Ben, every time he laid his eyes on Ben his heart fluttered.

“Er, no, I’m a big gay”

“Then how…Lexi?”

“Oh yeah, a year and a half ago I was still trying to prove to world I weren’t gay, but…that ain’t work”

“Oh…I” In his arms, Aiden stirs, and his cellphone begins to ring. He looks at his cellphone and sees that it’s Thomas; he excuses himself and takes the call.

“ _Hello Callum, how is Aiden doing now? Has the fever gone down?”_

“Hi, yeah, I think it’s gone down, his temperature feels normal again“ He looks up at Ben who is looking at him, like he’s trying to decipher something about Callum, it makes Callum blush and he sees something click in Ben’s head.

“ _Alright Callum, if there are any turn of events feel free to call me again, regardless of the time, yeah?”_

“Alright, bye”

“Was that your Missus asking about your little one? You’ve been out and about for a while now, yeah?”

“Er, no. That was his pediatrician.” He thinks quick about the next thing he says, trying to set his cards on the table “There Is no Missus.” He looks down at Aiden and then back up at Ben, a small smile across his face.

“Callum—“Ben starts but is interrupted by Lexi’s cries “I, uh, guess it’s time to take this little one back home”

He smiles again at Callum, and is standing up from his chair, “I hope to see you around Callum” he turns without saying anything else.

“Ben!” he shouts for him loud enough that it doesn’t startle his son, “Do wanna grab a pint some time? Or another coffee?”

“With the little ones?”

“Er, no, I was wondering like a date-date, you and me.”

“I’d love that Callum”

They exchange numbers, and as Callum is heading back home, he feels butterflies flutter around his chest. Aiden is wide awake, cooing up at Callum, and Callum can’t help but smile.

After he's bathed and fed Aiden, it takes little to no time for Aiden to fall asleep in his arms, he walks towards the nursery setting him down on his crib. He presses a soft kiss on the top of his sons head, making sure the baby monitor is on he walks out leaving the door slightly ajar, and he goes back to working. His phone dings loudly next to him, but upon seeing the name that was across the screen, he felt his whole body buzzing.

_Ben: I’ve got a baby sitter for the sprogs for Saturday, if you’re free_

_Callum: see you Saturday then_


	2. so you’re going on a date with a single dad—now what?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Saturday was finally here, and Callum was nervous. He hadn’t been on a first date in three years. With Whitney being his first and only date in his life, he felt nauseous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi, if you guys want me to keep adding to this lmk. i have ideas of where this can go, but if no ones asking for more ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

Ben and Callum kept exchanging texts throughout the week.

Ben’s fingers hovered over the send button on the thought of going to get breakfast or lunch before their date on Saturday. He decided against it, and just kept the messages flowing steadily.

Saturday was fast approaching and Callum was feeling nervous. He never got to experience going on a date with another man. The one man he had loved was ripped away from his grasp before he could do anything about it. And surely a date with a man wouldn’t be the same as a date with a woman, would it?

Callum tried to do some work but was constantly brought back to the thought of going on this date with Ben. _Ben._ Ben what? He didn’t even know this blokes last name and had thought it was a good idea to suggest going on a date with him. Speaking of going on a date with a random stranger that helped with getting the medicine for his son, he quickly made his way to his bedroom and went through his closet. He wanted to look presentable for this date with _Ben._ Most of the shirts he had looked… _unflattering_. They were all a size too big for him, when he was with Whitney he didn’t put much effort into the way he dressed. He had oversized shirts, silly jumpers, his army uniform and his old work suit in his closet. Nothing in that closet was wearable for a first date. He quickly put his shoes on, and headed to the nursery, seeing that his son was wide awake and sat. His first instinct was to snap a photo, it was the first time Callum saw Aiden sitting down on his own. He rushed over to his crib and picked him up in his arms and swung him around, joy filling his heart.

“Your mommy would be so proud of you” he pressed a kiss on the baby’s head and quickly changed him, and got a bag ready to head out.

\--

Callum found himself in the middle of the clothing store, looking through different shirts, jackets, jeans, and ties. In one word he feels _lost._ Dressing to impress was never really his forte, Whitney never really cared, and what he could’ve had with Chris was just him in his army uniform.

He reaches for a shirt, puts it back, takes it out again, and places it back. He walks away from that rack and heads to another. Finally, a store associate approaches him,

“Good afternoon sir, are you looking for something in particular?”

“Erm, yeah, I need something for a date”

The associate smiles at Callum and looks him up and down, once again smiling and reaching for a few different clothing items for Callum to try out. He leaves the store with a few bags of new shirts and jackets.

Before heading to his house, he knocks on his neighbor’s door, a smile spreading across his face as she answers the door.

“Oh Callum, you’re back! How’d the shopping go?”

“Eh, good good, just came to pick up Aiden before I headed home”

“Of course, come on in! Let me go get him and bring out his things”

Callum takes a seat on a pulled out chair, and gets a notification from a received text message, his stomach does a flip as he sees the name of _Ben_ across the notification bar. He’s about to open the message when his neighbor steps out of her room with Aiden in arms and his bag on her shoulder.

“He was a very good boy, didn’t even make a sound. You’re lucky Callum, when I had mine I was going crazy with how much noise they made” She set the baby on his stroller and handed Callum the bag.

“Alright thank you” He’s taking out his wallet to take out some money when his neighbor stops him in his tracks.

“Don’t worry about it love, it wasn’t a hassle. If you ever need him taken care of again, let me know, alright?”

He thanked her once again, and stepped out into the street. He slung Aiden’s bag strap over his chest, and carried his clothing bags on his right hand and pushed the stroller with his free hand.

Once he was settled into his house again, after feeding Aiden, changing him, and setting him down for his nap, he quickly made his way into his bedroom and emptied the contents of his shopping bags onto his bed, and looking them over he hung them in his closet, ready for Saturday.

Saturday was finally here, and Callum was nervous. He hadn’t been on a first date in three years. With Whitney being his first and only date in his life, he felt nauseous.

\--

“Ben, why are you still fussing over how you look?”

“Cos it’s a date, Lo” Ben was stuck in front of the mirror, messing with his hair for the umpteenth time. Groaning at the fact that his hair was not cooperating with him, he turned to Lola and showed off his outfit.

“Ben Mitchell, it’s not like you to act this way for a first date”

“Yeah well, I quite fancy him, alright?”

“Oh? You do, do ya? How long have you known him for?”

He took a deep breath, and thought about it. Lola was right; he didn’t know much about this _Callum_ bloke. Why did he move to Walford recently? Where was the kid’s mom? Ben at least had a solid answer as to how _he_ had Lexi, but Callum? All he had said was that _there is no Missus,_ why? What if he was a murderer? He shook the thought out of his head before it made a bigger mess of his mind. He turned to Lola and with a deep sigh asked,

“So, how do I look?” he stretched out his arms, gesturing to his body.

“You look okay”

“Just _okay_?” he groaned once again and stomped to his bedroom and changed his current shirt, which was a black and white with a disastrous pattern for a more clean look of a maroon colored long sleeve button up. When he saw himself in the mirror before stepping out, he could admit that this shirt was much better than the first one he had chosen.

“Well?”

“Ooh, yeah. Now you’re looking fit”

“Er, you sure you’re okay with babysitting his kid too?”

“Ben you asked me like a week ago, I would’ve said something had I had an issue, alright? As long as he’s a good bloke, I’ll help ya out”

There it was again, his mind wandering back to the fact that he didn’t really know anything about Callum.

\--

Callum might have left his flat a half an hour earlier than what had been their planned meeting time. He pushed through the doors of the café and ordered himself a coffee before taking a seat near the back so the stroller wouldn’t get in the way of people coming and going of the establishment.

Jay, whom he remembered from his and Ben’s first encounter, walked over to him with his coffee in hand.

“Cheers mate” Callum smiled as he took his warm beverage and took a sip, Jay not really leaving his spot. He pointed at the open seat in front Callum a _can I sit_ up in the air, to which Callum stretched his hand out in offering the empty seat.

“So, Callum, is it?”

Callum nodded, “Yeah”

“Listen...Ben is—“Before Jay could say anything else, Callum’s attention went straight to the man that had just entered the café.

“Ben” He got up from his seat, his nerves getting the best of him, “You look… _wow_ ” he stuttered out his compliment, tripping over his own words as he looked Ben up and down.

“You don’t look so bad yourself Callum” he bit his bottom lip as he took in Callum’s appearance, tight black slacks that did _not_ leave a lot to the imagination, a crisp white shirt and a gray blazer.

Jay rolls his eyes at their obvious attempt at flirting, “Yeah, yeah, I was just leaving. Have fun you two” Jay gets out of the chair, squeezing Ben’s shoulder as he passes him and heads back to being behind the till.

“He ain’t say nothing embarrassing about me, has he?”

“Nah, we didn’t really get to talking” Callum smiles at Ben, a faint blush decorating his cheeks.

“Alright, shall we crack on?”

“Yeah, ‘course”

“Alright, first we’ll take your little one to the babysitter”

“Who is the babysitter, Ben?”

“Just the mother of my child, no need to worry” Ben flashes a sincere smile towards Callum, as he holds the door open for him to push through with the stroller.

\--

Upon meeting Lola, Lexi’s mom, she was all bubbly attitude and smiles towards Callum. Ben had left them alone for a few minutes while he went to get his leather jacket and splash on a bit more of his cologne. When he returned to the living room, he found them huddled over Callum’s phone; Callum was a bit misty eyed showing her photos.

“—it’s the first time he’s sat up, he’s growing up so fast”

“Tell me about it, when my little one started crawling, I couldn’t stop crying. Next thing you know they’re walking, and then running.”

“Oi, don’t go off dampening the mood Lo”

Callum’s breath hitches when his eyes fall on Ben again, he licks his bottom lip and smiles at Ben.

“Alright then, both of you, out!” Lola practically pushes them out of the house, and closes the door behind them.

\--

They make their way towards a restaurant, “Thought we could get something to eat, I’m famished, you alright with that Callum?”

“Uh, yeah, yeah, No problem” If Callum was being honest, he doesn’t remember if he ate anything, he was too nervous thinking about this date. His mind kept racing to scenarios that, though they seemed reasonable and expected, he didn’t really know if that’s what Ben was looking for. A kiss goodnight? Was he expecting this date to end in something else aside from a few drinks and now dinner?

\--

“So, Callum, tell me more about yourself. What brought you to Walford?” Ben takes a sip from his beer, as he sees Callum’s hand stop midway, the fork in his hand making itself back down on the plate that was in front of him.

“Just needed a change of scenery for Aiden and myself” he lightly shrugs his shoulders, hoping that Ben wouldn’t try and dig deeper into why he had moved here.

“Er, what’s the story between you and Lola?” he asks, changing the subject away from himself.

Ben huffs out a laugh at that.

“Daddy dearest wasn’t that keen on his only son being a big ol’ gay, and wouldn’t stop nagging me. Throwing in my face how I would never be able to give him grandchildren.” He meets Callum’s intense stare, and shifts in his seat, “Er, Lola, bless her soul, helped me out. Said I couldn’t knock it if I didn’t try it, so I tried real hard, but my thoughts kept going back to this one bloke I knew and nine months later Lexi was here”

He scratches the back of his head, hating the fact of what’s coming, “Didn’t matter though, he don’t really care about her.”

“But you love her, Lexi”

“Course I do, I would give her the world if I could.” His shy smile isn’t missed by Callum, who leans forward a bit to take his hand and rub circles against the back of his hand “She’s my whole world, she is.”

“What about you, how did little Aiden come to be, aside from the obvious fun activities”

“I…I was married, needed to really make myself believe that I wasn’t who I truly was, ya know? Just keep the whole façade up. I didn’t really want kids at first but one night we went to a bar, got proper drunk and it happened. Eight and a half months later, Aiden was here”

“So you know about Lola, where’s Aiden’s mum—“

“Ah, Ben, who’s this then? Your new boy toy for the day? The new flavor of the week?”

Ben’s body and demeanor tensed at the words that came crashing down on him.

“Ian, don’t—“

The man directed his attention at Callum now, a mocking tone behind his voice, “I wouldn’t get too attached to this one, if I were you, he’d toss you out in a few days once he gets his kicks—“

“I’ll be the judge of that, thanks” Callum forces a fake smile and looks over at Ben, whose face had dropped, and was visibly uncomfortable.

“Let’s get out of here, yeah? Don’t really fancy the service, and the food ain’t even that great.” Before Ben could say anything, Callum is standing up and taking out his wallet, and some cash, leaving it on the table, “Keep the change, yeah? Might buy you a new attitude” And before the man, Ian, could say anything else, Callum reached for Ben’s hand and dragged him out of the establishment.

“Who was that, and why did he say that?”

“Big brother…half-brother, actually”

“You’re related to him? How is that even possible? You’re nothing like him!”

“Yeah… listen Callum, if you want to call it a night, I completely understand.”

“Nah, you’re alright, haven’t really had that drink, ‘ave we?”

Ben looked up at him, his blue eyes shining brighter under the fading sunlight, a soft smile spreading across his face.

“Alright then, is E20 okay with you?”

“I’m still the tourist around here, ain’t I? Lead the way Ben”

\--

Callum was sat on a booth near the back, his eyes never really leaving Ben, how he moved across the bar, confidence and swagger radiating off him. Callum gets a text notification from Lola, a video of Aiden dancing along to a song that was on the TV. He’s done sending her a reply, and re-watching the video that was sent to him, when a beer bottle is set in front of him.

“ _You come here often_?” He looks up at that, a smile spread across his face as his eyes fall on Ben’s figure, making his heart flutter. Ben sticks out his hand, and with such bravado presents himself, “Ben Mitchell”

“Callum Highway” Callum takes Ben’s hand in his own, and gives it a firm shake.

\--

Their date went smoothly. The questions about Whitney’s whereabouts were long forgotten. They were walking back to Ben’s house, bodies a little too close, hands brushing too often. Callum wasn’t drunk, just a little buzzed, not from the alcohol though; mostly from Ben’s company, if he was being honest. It had been quite a while that he felt this way, so free and open; forgetting the pain he held too close to his heart.

They arrived to Ben’s house, and before he opened the door to let themselves in, he turned to Callum looking up at him and looking deep into those eyes that took him in, a flirty smile spread across his face,

“Well, this is me”

“Yeah” Callum looked down Ben’s face; switching from staring at his eyes and then down to his lips, bringing his eyes back to locking them with Ben’s. He stretched up his hand, giving the slightest brush of his fingers across Ben’s cheek.

“May I?” Callum asks as he leans down, his lips lingering too close to Ben’s.

“I thought you’d never ask” Ben says as he gets on the tips of his toes and he moves his lips forward and presses them against Callum’s. The kiss is sweet. No need to make it more than what it’s meant to be. But to Callum, it means everything. He feels something inside him come alight. When their lips part and his eyes open, he feels like he sees more light around him, more color. This up close he can see all of Ben’s freckles that are scattered across his nose and cheeks. He sees a few faint scars across his cheeks and lips.

He brings his hands up to cradle Ben’s face and leans back in to press another kiss against his lips.

Ben on the other hand, feels alive again. He feels something in the base of his stomach start to burn, and make its way up to his chest. He feels his heart beat faster than it had in a while. He brings his own hands up to Callum’s face, and drags him down to his level again. When they pull apart, they’re breathing hard, their foreheads leaning against each other. Callum’s smile is so wide, it makes Ben’s heart feel full.

“Do you wanna stay for some coffee?” Ben asks, as he lets his hands slide down from Callum’s face down his chest, grabbing at the lapels of Callum’s blazer.

“Another time, yeah?” Callum answers, his hands still cradling Ben’s face, his thumbs caressing his cheek oh so gently.

“Alright” Ben opens the door and lets Callum through first. Callum makes his way into the living room and finds Aiden fast asleep in Lola’s arms, Lexi on Jay’s; both adults seem to be asleep as well.

He looks back to Ben, a questioning look on his face.

“Is that Jay from the café?” he whispers at Ben, hoping not to disrupt anyone that is sleeping, specifically the babies.

“Yeah, he’s Lola’s boyfriend, my brother” Callum’s eyebrows shoot up, confusion spread across his face, “Long story, I’ll tell you on our second date, yeah?”

“Yeah” Callum leans into Ben’s space and presses a chaste kiss against his lips. Ben walks towards the sofa that Lola is sat and gently nudges her, softer than soft whispering her name, “Lo, wake up, we’re back”

“Sorry, we fell asleep watching that kids show Lexi loves so much” she whispers back. Callum is in her space, reaching out for Aiden as she hands him over.

“Hope he weren’t a bother” he smiles at her, pressing a soft kiss against his little head.

“Nah, he was a sweet angel. He’s been fed and changed, so he’s good to go.”

Ben’s got the stroller closer to Callum now, holding it so it won’t move as Callum places him inside, covering him. He smiles up at Ben, “Thanks”

Callum turns to Lola, whose got a big smile across her face, looking between Ben and Callum.

"Thank you Lola, for everything"

"Don't worry about it, Callum. I hope you two had fun" 

He dodges her eyes, and smiles,

"Yeah"

His eyes meet Ben's for a fraction of a second and he feels his blush at the tip of his ears, as he smiles at Ben.

“Let me walk you home, Mr. Highway”

\--

“You ever think it’s too hard for you, Callum?” Ben asks as they walk from Ben’s house to Callum’s.

“What?”

“You know, raising him alone. Like, me, I’ve got Lo and Jay helping me with Lexi, but you’re alone. You haven’t even mentioned where his mum is at”

Callum feels the blood drain from his body, if there is anything that hurts him to think about, is that. He’s completely alone now, aside from his son. He takes a deep breath and looks over at Ben.

“Sometimes, but it’s worth it ain’t it? For him”

“Yeah, guess you’re right, sorry”

The air between them becomes thick with tension. They arrive to Callum’s doorstep, and Ben’s shuffling on his feet, feeling like there isn’t a chance for another date. 

“Do you want to come in? While I put him in his crib”

“Sure”

Callum opens the door, letting Ben in through first, and closing the door behind him. He turns on the lights of the living room, and takes Aiden out of his stroller.

“Make yourself at home, yeah? I’ll be back in a few minutes” He walks past Ben and makes his way into Aiden’s nursery, placing him down gently in his crib and pressing a soft kiss against his head. Making sure the baby monitor is on, he steps out, like always, leaving the door slightly ajar.

“You want something to drink?” Callum asks as he re-enters the living room and sees Ben looking at the pictures hanged on the wall.

“Nah, you’re alright, I should probably head back home anyway” his smile is tight as he answers Callum, and he makes way to the front door.

Callum is right behind him as he opens the door for him, and before Ben could step outside of his house, Callum grabs his arms and swings him into his own and leans down to press a heated kiss against his lips. When their lips part, Ben’s eyes are half-lidded and glossy looking up at Callum, he sees a shy smile spreading across Callum’s face.

“When can I see you again, Ben?”

“Whenever you want, Callum, just…kiss me again”

Callum leans back down into Ben’s space, taking his lips into his own. His hands coming up to Ben’s neck and staying there, holding him in place. For Callum, kissing Ben felt like something natural, something that he was born to do. They’re interrupted by Ben’s phone ringing loudly in his pocket. He reluctantly pulls away from Callum, and slides his hand inside his pocket to see Lola’s name across the screen.

“I guess that’s my cue to go”

With one last small peck to Callum’s lips, and a soft goodbye, Ben is on his way home. He feels like he’s floating across the square. He feels like a weight has been lifted from his chest, like he’s finally able to breathe again.

\--

When he’s back home, he finds Jay and Lola cuddling in the sofa, watching a movie.

“I didn’t interrupt anything, did I? We were just worried”

“Nah, we were just talking. I’m going to bed. Goodnight you two, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do” he stealthy dodges the cushion that Jay throws at him, 

"With that aim, i guess there's no guessing why Lexi ain't got a little brother or sister yet" Ben laughs his way into his bedroom.

He’s getting ready for bed, removing his contacts , putting on his glasses, and he’s about to wash his mouth, when he brings his fingers against his lips. He can still feel Callum’s lips against his; it sends a burning shiver down his spine.

He’s lying in bed, thinking about sending Callum a text when a notification appears at the top of his phone. It’s a text. From Callum.

_Callum: I had fun tonight x_

_Ben: I did too x_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not beta'd all mistakes are my own
> 
> * whitney's whereabouts is still up for grabs, i have an idea of why shes out of the picture but tssssss idk


	3. so you’ve gone on a few dates—is he boyfriend material?

Callum and Ben had been going on steady dates for almost three months now, from having little play-dates between their children, to having late drinks on Friday or Saturday nights. Callum felt like maybe these feelings he was developing for Ben were warrant for something else, something like maybe asking Ben to be his… _boyfriend._

\---

_Callum: come over later? I’ll make us dinner_

_Ben: sounds like a plan, I’ll see you later_

\---

Callum finds himself waiting in line in the café. He needs to talk to Jay. When it’s finally his turn to order, he gets his usual and casually asks Jay for a few minutes of his time.

“It’s me break in a few minutes, so might as well” Jay talks to Marie letting her know he’s taking his lunch now and heads to sit with Callum.

“No Aiden?” he asks as he places his lunch on the table.

“Nah, left him with the babysitter. Jay, I need to ask you something” he mumbles his last few words, dipping his head down, ears turning bright red.

“Alright, what is it?” Jay asks as he takes a bite out of his sandwich, looking straight at Callum, “Is it about Ben?”

“Is it that obvious?”

“You two ain’t been too subtle since that first day you two walked in through them doors. So go on then, spit it out Callum”

“I’ve uh…I’ve invited Ben to my flat for some homemade dinner…like a date”

“That’s nice, is that nice? Wait—ain’t you two been going on dates for three months? You still look a bit nervous to me, Callum“

“Yeah, but I mean…ain’t this like a _proper_ date?”

“Umm…” Jay’s looking confused at Callum, since their first date he’s known they were _proper dates_ according to Ben, but now that Callum’s talking to him, he’s questioning everything, “Wait hold on, if this is about you two doing— _having_ …ya know what, I don’t wanna hear it—“

“What? No, no Jay, it ain’t that it’s just…” he looks down at his hands, avoiding Jay’s gaze, mindlessly playing with a sugar packet that was on the table.

“I’ve never had a boyfriend before, Jay” Callum huffs out a soft laugh yet feels his whole face burn, confessing something like that to not only someone he now considered a friend, but Ben’s _brother_ , was something he never thought he was going to do.

“Mate, I’ve been dating Lo for a while, and I still don’t understand birds”

Callum looks up at Jay through thick lashes, ears burning red,

“And he’s had a few, ain’t he?”

“Hmm, yeah, but I wouldn’t call them _boyfriends_ ” Jay says, deep down knowing the full extent of all the men Ben’s been with. Just one night stands, and sometimes the one that lasted more than a week because _“he was that good”_ , but never passed more than two weeks. Those were rare.

“I just…I don’t wanna say the wrong thing and look stupid.”

“You like him, yeah?”

Callum drops his gaze and slowly nods.

“And you want him to be your boyfriend?”

Callum looks up at that, hearing that he wanted Ben to be his boyfriend from someone else, made things click into place in his head. He smiles widely, his eyes shining but still too shy to look directly at Jay, let alone openly admit it, he avoids Jay’s gaze by looking away and then turning his full attention at his hands; smoothing out the sugar packet and placing it back on the table.

He takes a deep breath and nods again.

“Well, there you go mate. Ask him to be your boyfriend. Ain’t that hard, is it?”

Callum is smiling again, getting up from the table,

“Cheers Jay” he squeezes his shoulder as he passes by him.

“Hey Jay?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t tell Ben, please”

“Nah, you’re alright mate”

Callum’s out of the café on his way back to his flat. He feels butterflies soaring through his belly; he feels a fire burning in his chest. In one word he feels _happy._ He makes a small detour towards the Minute Mart, buying the ingredients he needs to make his infamous _Chicken Pasta_.

\---

_Ben: what time should I come around_

_Callum: see you here around 6_

\---

“Ben, why are you acting all weird again, ain’t you two been on dates before?”

“Yeah, but we mostly have met over at E20 or the park with the little ones, and he’s invited me over to his flat, to have dinner, that _he_ made”

Lola shoots him a mischievous grin,

“Oh, don’t be like that Lo. We’re taking things slow, alright?”

“You _, Ben Mitchell,_ Walford’s resident hussy, taking things slow with _some bloke_?” she laughs.

“He ain’t _some bloke_ , Lola, and you know this”

She makes a face at him while she raises her hands up in defeat and turns back around on the sofa and goes back to watching her TV show.

“You inviting him to Lexi’s birthday party next week?” she calls over her shoulder, waiting for Ben’s answer.

Ben had thought about it, Lexi was turning one, and they were throwing her a big bash surrounded mostly by Lola’s mommy group and a few close relatives.

“You’d be okay with that?”

“‘Course Ben! You should invite your boyfriend to Lexi’s party”

“He… he ain’t my boyfriend” it’s a whisper that doesn’t reach Lola, he scratches at the back of his head, he and _boyfriends_ never really worked out. Not with the record he’s got. He shakes his head at the start of _that_ painful memory and instead he walks over to Lexi who’s on her baby walker, making noises as she hits the buttons. He kisses her on the head “I’ll see you later baby” and kisses her again on her chubby cheek. He looks at his watch walks toward the door and grabs his coat hanging from the coat hanger.

“I’m heading out now” Lola turns to wave her goodbye “Don’t wait up” he smirks at her.

“I thought you two were taking it slow!” She shouts after him laughing as he closes the door behind him.

\--

He still had a lot of time to spare, to walk and to think about things. Everything was going nice and steady with Callum. Most of their dates consisted of taking their kids to the park or walking around the Square, talking about everything and yet about nothing at all. He still didn’t know much about Aiden’s mum, or why Callum had moved to Walford and that to a certain point was still a bit alarming for Ben. He walked into the Minute Mart, grabbing a bottle of wine and a pack of beers.

He made his way to Callum’s flat, thinking about how he was going to breach that subject with Callum, it was either going to make them or break them, but Ben wanted—no _needed_ to know.

He stopped in front of Callum’s door, taking a deep breath before he brought his hand up to knock. Seconds later the door was opening, and like always, Callum took his breath away. Callum was wearing a plain white t-shirt, a black bomber jacket, and tight blue jeans that left Ben _salivating_. He cleared his throat, now feeling like he overdressed for their date; for god’s sake, he was wearing a damn tie under his flannel coat.

Callum is all smiles as he opens the door, seeing Ben across from him, his heart skips a beat. He motions for Ben to come in, and as Ben is passing in front of him, Callum can’t help but reach for him and pull him in for a kiss. With the thoughts that were going through his mind, this kiss just felt a lot different to Callum. He smiled as he pulls away from Ben, whose got a blissed out look on his face.

“I’m wow—I should bring beer and wine more often to our dates”

Callum lets out a soft laugh as he gently pushes Ben towards the kitchen “Put them inside the fridge, dinner is almost ready” Callum closes the door behind them, leaning against it a few seconds to catch his breath.

“What ya making anyways? Smells delicious” Ben asks as he closes the door to the fridge, leaning a bit over the stove and pots, sniffing the steam that was coming out of the pots.

Callum walks behind him, wrapping his arms around Ben’s waist and pulling him tighter against him, and with a sultry voice he whispers against Ben’s ear, “ _Chicken Pasta_ ”

Ben’s whole body shudders at that. He turns around within Callum’s arms, bringing his own to wrap around Callum’s neck.

“Now, don’t go saying things like that Callum, don’t want to get a stiff every time you mention _Chicken Pasta_ ” he mimics the tone Callum used when mentioning the dish, a big grin forming against his lips as he sees Callum’s big smile come to life and a throaty laugh.

“Alright, alright, I ain’t doin’ that again”

Ben pulls away from Callum’s arms, unbuttoning his coat and swiftly removing it, and placing it over the back of one of the chairs.

If it was possible, Callum’s jaw would be on the ground and he’d be struggling to pick it back up with the view that is in front of him. Ben is dressed is pinstripe lead slacks, a slate button up and a silk charcoal tie. His hand instinctively reaches out for Ben’s tie and traces the material up with his finger, when he’s at a middle point he wraps the material around his hand and gently pulls Ben forward into him. “You look amazing, Ben” he whispers all too soft, that Ben almost doesn’t hear it. Callum is about to lean in for another kiss, when he starts hearing sizzling coming from the pots and a faint burning smell, at the same time Aiden’s cries come washing over them from the nursery.

“Oh fuck—“he quickly moves Ben out of the way and reaches for the pots and moves them away from the fire.

“If you’re okay with it, I’ll go check on Aiden”

“Ben, you don’t have to—“

“I want to, don’t worry about it. Has he got a bottle ready?” Ben asks as he looks around the kitchen

“Yeah, it’s right over there” Callum points next to the fridge where there is a bottle warmer, with a prepared bottle for Aiden. Ben grabs it and starts shaking it, turning around once more and saying,

“Just make sure the _Chicken Pasta_ ain’t completely burnt” he smirks again as he walks over to the hallway and once he’s out of sight lightly shouts “Door; left or right?”

“Right” Callum shouts back, doing his best to salvage their dinner.

\--

“Hey there, what’s got you in a bad mood, eh?” Ben reaches into the crib for the crying baby and gently bounces him around in his arms.

“Listen mate, you honestly just cock-blocked me and that ain’t fair, your dad is pretty hot, ya know that?” Ben shakes the bottle around and places the tip near Aiden’s mouth.

“You hungry? Or have you got a dirty nappy?” He lifts him up and sniffs around,

“You’re good, so what’s wrong, eh?”

He’s pacing around the room, lightly bouncing Aiden up and down and swaying him left and right.

“Ya know, when my Lexi gets fussy, like you right now, I tend to take her out for walks. It’s actually how I met your dad, ya know that? Proper little cupid’s you are, ain’t ya?” He lightly taps on Aiden’s nose, smiling when the baby scrunches his face and coo’s at Ben.

Aiden’s cries have subsided, and they are now soft sobs, his bright blue eyes looking up at Ben. Ben offers the bottle again, and is pleased when Aiden’s little hands come up to grab the bottle and starts sucking down the milk.

“Sometimes she likes it when I sing for her”

He gently rocks the baby again and is gingerly patting him in his back as he begins humming a soft tune, and then starts singing in an almost hushed voice

“ _When you're so lonely lying in bed_

_Night's closed its eyes but you can't rest your head_

_Everyone's sleeping all through the house_

_You wish you could dream but forgot to somehow_

_Sing this lullaby to yourself_

_Sing this lullaby to yourself_

_And if you are waiting, waiting for me_

_Know I'll be home soon darling I guarantee_ ”

In his arms, Aiden has gone back to sleep. He’s still humming out the soft tune as he looks around the nursery for a small cover and when found he places it over his shoulder. Ben carefully lifts Aiden up against his shoulder and starts gently patting his back to make the baby burp. He hears the air escape the baby and brings him back down and he sways him gently a few more times walking back towards the crib delicately placing him down. He sees a stuffed teddy bear near the end of the crib and grabs at it, placing it near Aiden and before leaving him alone he is making sure to cover him.

\--

Callum is trying too hard not to cry. Through the baby monitor he heard every word Ben said to his son. It made his heart clench. He heard Ben’s hushed voice sing a lullaby to his son, calm him down, and with no actual reason as to why he should be doing that.

“Alright, he’s been fed, and is fast asleep and—“his hushed words are cut off when his eyes land on Callum and the way he looks. Callum is looking at Ben as if he has hung the moon and stars, his eyes are glassy and his cheeks are flushed.

“Callum, you alright? If I did something wrong, let me know and I’ll—”

Before Ben can continue what he is saying, Callum is in his space, pulling him in against his body, bringing his hands around Ben’s neck and pressing a kiss against Ben’s lips. Callum hopes this kiss can convey everything he wants to say; _Thank you. I really like you._ Please _, be my boyfriend._

When they pull apart, Ben’s lips are kiss swollen and red. His cheeks are flushed and his eyes are half open, he’s trying to grasp for air.

“You hungry?” Callum asks as he gently pats Ben’s cheek and pulls away from him, “sit” Callum nods towards the table as he takes plates down and starts to serve their dinner.

“Not that I’m complaining, but what was that about, eh?”

“I don’t know, just felt like it, didn’t I?” he answered as he set the plates down on the table, taking out the cutlery and setting them down near the plates.

“Beer? Or do ya want that wine?”

“Whatever you want Callum”

Callum thinks about it for a few seconds, thinking that maybe he should save the wine _just in case._ He takes out two cans of beers and sets them down too, opening his can and taking a long swig before he sits down.

“You alright there, mate?”

_Mate? Mate._

_Oh._

Hearing Ben call him _mate_ felt like something was ripped away from his chest. Maybe Callum was seeing something that wasn’t truly there. He nods at Ben, “Yeah, yeah, I’m alright. Lets eat”

\--

The meal goes down smoothly. They have a pleasant talk about their day. Ben tells Callum about his day at the car lot, whilst Callum tells Ben about his day at the office.

"Chicken Pasta was delicious Callum. Where'd you learn to cook so good?"

"Little bit from the army, little bit from trying out different recipes I found online"

Ben hums in acknowledgement, "Might just keep ya around" 

They clear the table in a comfortable silence, Callum throwing a few shy glances at Ben as he helped dry the dishes and put them away. Maybe he was reading too much into this, for all he knew, Ben just saw him as a friend with a few benefits; like kissing, and slight groping. Callum is so lost in his thoughts he hadn’t noticed that Ben had been calling his name for a while now.

“—are you alright?”

“Hm? Yeah, yeah, sorry, was just thinking about something. What were you saying?”

“Lexi’s turning one next week, and we was just wondering if you wanted to come to her birthday party. You sure you’re alright Callum?”

_Oh._

“Yeah, I’d love that” he smiles back at Ben, even if there could never be something between them; he still completely enjoyed Ben’s company.

What caught him by surprise was Ben reaching out for his hand and guiding them to the living room, pushing Callum down on the sofa and taking the seat next to him, leaning forward to press a kiss alongside Callum’s neck. Ben’s hand traveled across his chest and down his stomach. Stopping as it reaches Callum’s belt, he pulls his hand away and stares at Callum.

Callum’s breathing seems to stop. He doesn’t know if he wanted whatever Ben was aiming to do, to continue or he was happy it had stopped before it got too out of hand.

“Ben, I gotta tell you something”

“Anything” it’s a breathy answer that he was barely able to let out.

“It’s about Whitney.”

“You ain’t….kill her, ‘ave you—“

“You what?”

“Ya know, like she finding out you was gay, or something like that? Before exposing you and all that”

“She ain’t…I ain’t kill her, that’s the truth.” He takes a deep breath, he knew he had to tell Ben sooner or later, almost three months going on dates, talking about other important things; like Ben’s time inside, Ben’s constant check-up’s regarding his hearing and Callum being in the army, and the reason why he had opted to leave the army. And he thinks a lot about how he could’ve easily told Ben why him and Whitney had gone their separate ways, “She found some letters from Chris, my…my army mate, it wasn’t nothing like you’re probably thinking” Bens looking at him intently, nodding at him.

“I love— _loved_ Chris, he’s the one that made me realize the whole truth, ya know? He came to visit me after his last tour, he met Aiden and before he left…he leaned in for a kiss, and she walked in on us.”

“Ah, so she did find you! Naughty Callum” he says it with a smile on his face, but retracts when he notices Callum’s solemn look on his face, “that ain’t all the story, is it?”

Callum shakes his head gently, tears forming at the corners of his eyes, “The thing is that my brother was with her, he was coming to visit us and meet the baby and he saw everything” he takes a deep breath, chin trembling at the horrible memory “after that, I ain’t seen Chris again. Then his sister called me a few days later…telling me he’d been attacked, and he weren’t gonna make it”

He looks over at Ben, tears streaming down his face.

“It was Stuart, my brother”

“Callum—“

“After that, I went to his funeral, and she decided she ain’t want part of our lives anymore, Aiden’s included. Packed her bags in the middle of the night and left, leaving signed divorce papers on the table.”

Ben’s heart clenched at that, two different souls suffering from the same consequences, Ben cleared his throat, “What happened with your brother?”

“He’s serving time, almost 40 years”

“I—I was actually going to ask you about her tonight, ya know? But thank you Callum, for trusting me”

Callum smiles at that. How can he be connected to such degree with a man he’d only met just three months ago? He never had this type of connection with Whitney.

“I’m sorry; I should’ve told you sooner, Ben”

“No, it’s alright Callum”

“I’ve also got something else to tell ya” Callum starts, taking a deep breath and turning his body slightly to face Ben.

“Go on then, what is it?”

“I like ya, Ben.”

A smile spreads across both their faces, after those words left Callum’s lips.

“You do, do ya?”

“Yeah. Yeah I do”

“Enough to try and make an honest man out of me? Get me off the market?” There’s a gleam behind Ben’s eyes, that smile ever growing.

Callum pouts, a pensive look on his face, as his eyes fall back on Ben his smile widens.

“Yeah”

“Yeah?” Ben questions with a small smile on his face.

Callum leans in for a kiss but is shocked when Ben leans back, not letting their lips meet.

“Go on then, ask me”

“What?”

“Ask me _the_ question, Callum”

Callum huffs out a soft laugh, rolling his eyes at Ben’s teasing, looking back at Ben and knowing he was making the right choice.

“Ben Mitchell, will you be my boyfriend?”

Ben bites his lip in fake-consideration, knowing damn well his answer before Callum had finished the question, that had Callum asked him to be his boyfriend since day one, he would’ve said _yes._

Ben lunges forward, pressing his lips against Callum’s, bringing his hands to cup Callum’s face, pulling back only just a little he whispers against his lips, “yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank everyone who took their time to read and encourage me to keep writing and adding to this fic.  
> Especially, big shoutout to gollyderek on tumblr who's always pushing me to keep writing, and my lovely anon who ~~threatened~~ encouraged me various times to finish this fic.
> 
> So thank you to everyone, I hope you all enjoyed reading this, as much as I enjoyed writing this.

**Author's Note:**

> whitney's whereabouts is open for interpretation
> 
> not beta'd and all mistakes are my own


End file.
